Pond's End
by allon-syandgeronimo
Summary: Told in the perspective of eight year old Anthony Williams as he listens to his parents and his older sister River talk about an old family friend that has apparently moved on to someone named Clara around the dinner table one night in 1954 New York.


**A/N: Hello! I wrote this as result of the feels-inducing season finale. It's off this headcanon I have that River would sometimes come around for dinner with the Ponds and Anthony and would kind of tell Amy and Rory what the Doctor was up to. Sorry if it's bad/rushed, but it's 2 AM and the words didn't really come out like I wanted them to. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: If I had any ownership over Doctor Who, you all would know about it as I would be shouting it from the rooftops at all hours of the day.**

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_"The universe has to move forward. Pain and loss, they define us as much as happiness or love. Whether it's a world or a relationship, everything has its time. And everything ends."_

_-Sarah Jane Smith, "School Reunion" (2006)_

**Pond's End**

"Is River coming for dinner?" I asked as Mom put a plate of food in front of me. I pretended to gag as Dad walked into the kitchen and placed a kiss on her lips. She rolled her eyes and smiled.

"She said she would. You know how she loves my special lasagna."

"More like she loves the free alcohol," Dad said, winking at me as he helped Mom put food on the table. She rolled her eyes and punched his shoulder. I looked down at my plate and smiled to myself.

Some kids don't like when their parents are overly touchy-feely with each other, but I kind of like it. They look so much happier and younger, like they're remembering happy memories. Maybe it has something to do with River.

River's my sister. Not my real sister, of course because I'm adopted. But I still think of her as my older sister. It's kind of weird because she looks like she's the same age as our parents, but Dad says it's because she's really mature and is an "old soul" and Mom says she's seen a lot, whatever that means. I've keep asking questions about her but no one will ever answer me.

"So how was school today?" Dad asked as he spooned some lasagna onto his plate. He and Mom both still had their accents even though they had lived in New York for a long time.

"You want to tell him, or shall I?" Mom asked, eyes filled with fire. I looked down at my plate.

"I got a call from school today from the principle today. Apparently _Anthony _got in a fight at school with some boy. Do you want to tell your father what you told me, Anthony?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but just then River's voice filled our entryway. "Hello?"

"In the kitchen, River!" Mom called. Moments later River appeared, smiling.

"River!" I yelled as I ran to hug her legs. She patted the top of my head and laughed. "Where have you been? I haven't seen you in forever!"

"I've been traveling, sweetie," she explained. "You've gotten so big! How old are you now, anyway? Sixteen?"

I laughed. "I'm eight, silly!"

"Yes, how could I have forgotten!" She said as she sat down at the table. "So, what's new?"

"Anthony, you wanna tell your sister what you did?"

I stabbed my food and moved it around my plate, avoiding eye contact. "I got in a fight at school."

"Don't you worry about that," River said, winking at me. "I got in loads of fights when I was in school. What happened?"

"Matt told me that the Doctor wasn't real," I muttered. "And that he was stupid."

River and Dad raised their eyebrows at Mom. "You're mad because of that, Amy?"

"Well, yeah! I don't want Anthony getting into fights because of the Doctor!" Mom argued.

"Wanna know a funny story about your Mum?" Dad asked, leaning in towards me. I nodded.

"She used to bite people when they told her the Doctor wasn't real," he whispered. I started laughing, feeling my face turn red.

"Mommy!"

Mom crossed her arms and blew a piece of hair out of her eyes as she glared at Dad. "_Thank _you, Rory."

River laughed. "Oh, lighten up, Amy. You can't get mad at Anthony for defending the Doctor."

Somewhere in the back of my head, a question tugged at my brain, among many others. It had always confused me why River sometime called Mom by her first name and it was fine, but when I did it sometimes Mom would yell at me.

"I just don't want him to have the childhood I did," I heard Mom whisper angrily. "It was horrible having no one believe you and thinking you were crazy. It's best for him to just think the Doctor's a story."

Dad opened his mouth, but I cut him off. "You know I can hear you, Mom."

Mom looked at Dad and River, annoyed. "So, River, where are you travelling to next?"

"Oh! Mum, I'm so excited. I'm going to this library that has all the books in the universe!" River explained, grinning.

My parents smiled back, happy for her, but there was a certain kind of sadness in Mom's eyes that looked a little like longing. I hardly ever saw it except for when River talked about traveling, and even then it was hidden well.

"When are you leaving?" Dad asked. "And who are you going with?"

"I'm leaving right after this, actually. And I'm going with another group of archaeologists."

"Promise you'll tell me all about it when you get back?" I asked. She smiled at me.

"Promise. You know I always do."

There was a bit of silence as Mom, Dad, and River sipped at their wine. Finally, just as I was about to leave the table to go play outside, Mom started to speak again.

"How is he?" she asked. I didn't bother asking who. I had learned a long time ago that they would never tell me, except to say an old family friend.

"He's with someone else," River replied, somewhat timidly. Mom pursed her lips together as Dad put his hand on her knee under the table.

"What's her name?"

"Clara Oswald. Haven't met her, of course, but I do hear rumors. They're calling her the Impossible Girl."

Mom had an odd vacant expression on her face that I had only seen once when I saw her reading a newspaper article about weird stuff happening in England during the queen's coronation with the electricity and the televisions.

"And why do they call her that?"

"I heard the D—I mean, him telling Vastra—you remember her, don't you? She helped us at Demon's Run…anyway, I overheard him telling her. He apparently has met her twice before…and, surprisingly, you two once."

I could tell that they had all forgotten that I was still here, so I didn't make a sound and just listened to everything, even though I didn't understand most of it.

"What?" Where?" Dad asked.

"Asylum of the Daleks," she whispered, almost too quietly for me to hear. _Almost_. I watched as my parents' faces morphed into a whole range of emotions. Remembering something from long ago and pain from both of them. Some guilt, too.

"Soufflé Girl?" Dad asked, smiling slightly. River nodded. "She called me Nina. Said it was a personal choice."

Mom shot him a look filled with jealously, but looked away before he could see. "She died, didn't she?"

"She was already dead. Turned into a dalek."

"When was the other time?" Mom asked steadily.

"Victorian London. She was a governess and a barmaid. She passed the one word test. Want to know what she said?" River asked, sipping her wine. "Pond."

Mom and Dad's reaction confused me. They looked startled and slightly uneasy. Why was the word "pond" so important?

"Entirely coincidental, apparently. He asked her to travel with him, but she fell off a cloud and died shortly after."

"Then what happened?" Dad asked quietly. The mood in the room was very somber for reasons I didn't know.

River took a breath. "He found her in 2013 London. They're traveling, but not all the time. She has no idea that they've met before, but you know he loves a good puzzle."

Mom was quiet for several moments as we all stared at her. When she spoke. It sounded like she was working to keep her voice steady. "It's been sixteen years."

Dad rubbed her shoulder. I was again confused, but I didn't want to say anything for fear of getting kicked out. "It's been sixteen years for us, how long has it been for him?"

"I can't say for sure. I think six months," River replied. Mom's face fell slightly. I felt bad for her and wanted to comfort her even though I had no idea what was wrong.

"It only took him six months. Sixteen years, and it only took him six months."

"Amy," Dad said warningly, suddenly noticing me for the first time. "Anthony!"

Mom looked at me tiredly. "Why don't you go play for a bit, honey? Then maybe River will tell you some more stories?"

I was annoyed, but I slid out of my chair and left the kitchen, closing the door behind me. However, I had no intent of missing out on the conversation, no matter how confusing it was.

Pressing my ear to the door, I strained myself to listen.

"…Told him to never be alone," I heard Dad saying. "In your letter."

"It still hurts, Rory," Mom said quietly.

"Amy, don't you ever think he forgot about you two. He still has your glasses and wears them when he reads, even though you know perfectly well he doesn't actually need them," River explained. "You know he had to move on someday. I tried to stay with him after Manhattan, like you said, but he wouldn't have it. Wanted me to live my life and travel."

"What did he do in those six months?" Dad asked.

"Retired."

Mom laughed. "Retired? The Doctor, retired? Is this the same man that had the attention span of a gnat during the year he came to stay?"

"Manhattan really messed him up, Amy. He tried to go back, you know. After threatening genocide on the angels, he begged them to take him too," River said gently.

Faintly, I could hear Dad making soothing sounds, like he was trying to comfort Mom. I pictured her crying and immediately felt bad for eavesdropping.

"…Guess the Pond Era is over," Dad said finally as I put my ear back to the door.

"Isn't it funny how it took all this time to finally let go?" Mom said shakily. "Sixteen years. I was Anthony's age when I met him, and now I'm a grown up. I feel so old."

"I guess it took him getting a new…companion…to accept that we can't ever go back. It's taken sixteen years."

"Technically he won't get a new companion for another 59 years, so—"

"Shut up, stupid face."

They must have kissed or something because I heard River make a disgusted sound. "Ugh, look at you two acting like a couple of teenagers."

They both laughed. "Well, look at you, River. The last of the Ponds. You better make sure this Clara doesn't get him into too much trouble. God knows we did."

"That is true. You three acted like a bunch of five years olds on a sugar rush. Not that I'm not convinced the Doctor _isn't _a five year old with the way he wears his hair, but at least he got rid of the fez," River laughed. "Now, I must be going, or else I'll be late to the library."

"You know, for a time traveler, you sure seem to always be short on time," Dad joked. I could practically hear Mom and River rolling their eyes.

"You know me, I like a dramatic entrance. Give Anthony a kiss for me, will you? And tell him to keep on believing in the Doctor. He needs all the believers he can get."

I heard the back door close shut with a snap. With a grin, I raced up to my room to draw the library. I couldn't wait for her to tell me all about it when she got back.


End file.
